Non-antibiotic drugs also speed up the spread of antibiotic resistance

New research from The University of Queensland has found non-antibiotic pharmaceuticals can significantly promote the spread of antibiotic resistance via bacterial mating.

A study led by Dr Jianhua Guo from UQ’s Advanced Water Management Centre said while antibiotics were known to promote antibiotic resistance, it wasn’t known if non-antibiotic pharmaceuticals could also increase bacterial conjugation.

“Bacterial conjugation is the exchange of genetic material between bacterial cells by direct cell-to-cell contact or by a bridge-like connection between two cells,” he said.

“It’s believed bacterial conjugation, or bacterial mating, is one of the major pathways to the spread of antibiotic-resistant genes.

“Recently, we started wondering if non-antibiotic pharmaceuticals such as carbamazepine – a prescription drug used to treat epilepsy and neuropathic pain – can accelerate the transmission of antibiotic resistance through bacterial conjugation.”

“Further work is required to investigate if similar effects have been caused by carbamazepine in human gut microbiota.”

The discovery, along with previous studies by the group on triclosan and fluoxetine, is a warning to re-evaluate the potential roles of non-antibiotic pharmaceuticals in the spread of antibiotic resistance.